The Doctor's Smile
by lady-emeraldeyes09
Summary: The Doctor has shared many things with Rose over their years together, and he saves one particular smile for her. (Another that started as a challenge prompt from a friend.)


Rose stood in the door frame between the kitchen and sitting room of her flat, studying the man sitting on her sofa.

He _looked_ like him.

He_ sounded_ like him.

The blue suit he had borrowed from the TARDIS hugged his tall, lanky body the same way.

The man that looked like the Doctor had his legs crossed and was fumbling with the telly's remote control, grumbling to himself about the utter lack of "intelligent programming". It had only been a couple of days since the final goodbye at Bad Wolf Bay. The first kiss she had shared with this new Doctor seemed worlds away. But every touch, every time he said her name, the way his hand fit perfectly in hers - it all felt the same.

"I can feel you staring at me." The Doctor turned to face her and flashed his ridiculously adorable toothy grin at her. _The same one_, she thought.

::-::-::

"What do you think, Rose? They look pretty good, don't they?" The Doctor was holding a tray of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies in his hand, presenting them to Rose for inspection. Rose picked one off of the tray, impressed at the incredible smell. One bite had her hooked.

"Oh my _gosh_, these are amazing! Doctor, I didn't know you could cook!" Peering around at the kitchen the TARDIS had produced, Rose started to believe the kitchen had done most of the work, but she didn't let that dampen the Doctor's spirits.

After watching the Earth die and nearly dying themselves, he had wanted to treat her to something special, but she wasn't ready for another trip yet so he decided to make something for her. _Cookies,_ he had mumbled to himself. _Humans and their sweets. It'll be perfect._ He had fumbled around the TARDIS' rooms while Rose relaxed in her new bedroom, before the TARDIS produced a kitchen for him, complete with all chrome appliances, save for an old-fashioned, bright red refrigerator. That refrigerator struck him as so funny, surrounded by modern appliances; he couldn't stop laughing at it for several minutes before starting on the cookies.

Rose snatched the tray from the Doctor's hand, shouted at him over her shoulder to bring some milk, and darted to the TARDIS control room. She patted the seat next to her when the Doctor reappeared in the doorway, holding a gallon of milk ("you humans and your obsession with mammary glands") and two glasses. He tentatively sat next to Rose, smiling stiffly, and started to apologize for the trip, but Rose shoved a cookie in his mouth before he could start. That was the first time she saw him smile like that.

::-::-::

If there was one great thing about the time vortex, it was that it allowed the radio in Rose's room on the TARDIS to pick up incredible stations from all over the universe, or at least the ones that were compatible with an AM/FM receiver. The old hits of Def Leppard lost their appeal when she heard what else was out there. Usually the Doctor appreciated the soft, omnipresent hum of the TARDIS engines, but he didn't mind Rose's radio because she would often turn up a good song and coax him into dancing with her, even if the lyrics translated by the TARDIS didn't make any sense. Rose was light on her feet and the Doctor loved to teach her new dance moves. She wanted to learn to waltz, but that was the one dance that the Doctor held out on her. Every now and again she would comment on how she would be the best dancer at her wedding, and her face would turn a lovely shade of pink when he would smile at her like that with his new smile.

One night, Rose couldn't sleep. She padded out of her room in a long t-shirt, around what would have been three in the morning (precisely three hours, twelve minutes and thirty-seven seconds after midnight Earth time, the Time Lord knew) and stood next to the Doctor, who was in his usual spot on the jump seat in the control room. She had turned her radio on before leaving her room, and it was playing a slow ballad. The Doctor put the TARDIS engines on idle and stood up, gesturing to take her by the hand.

"Now is a good time as ever; what do you say, Rose Tyler? Care to dance?"

Rose took his hand and joined him. He slowly explained the steps to her, "_One, two, three, four… one, two, three, four,_" and patiently led her around the console room until she had the steps down. He spun her around and placed his hand on the small of her back, pushing her into a dip. Rose didn't get the hint when he bent her. She fell, laughing all the way down and bringing the Doctor down with her. He lay on top of her, unable to get up, the two of them laughing until their stomachs ached.

The Doctor's face was barely inches from her own, and Rose couldn't resist – she crossed the short distance and kissed him. He jerked back in surprise, but his smile was still there. That smile, that the Doctor had begun saving just for her.

::-::-::

"Sorry, Doctor, I just keep thinking you're going to vanish or something. Would you come and help me make this cake for Tony's party?" The Doctor nodded and followed her into the kitchen, where Rose had the ingredients sitting next to a mixing bowl and whisk on the counter. He picked the whisk and eggs up, unsure what to do with them. Rose laughed. "Here, Doctor, let me." She demonstrated how to crack the eggs and separate the shell, but when the Doctor attempted it he got shell all over the batter, cursing his slower human reflexes. Laughing, Rose got a bit of the batter on her finger and wiped it on the Doctor's nose. _There's that smile again._

"Oh, you're gonna play it like that, are you?" He got a handful of the batter and smeared it into her hair, sprinting away before Rose could react.

"I'm gonna _kill you!_" She chased the Doctor through her flat, batter bowl in hand, tossing handfuls of batter at him. Their playful screams echoed through the halls. Finally cornered, Rose surrendered the bowl and the Doctor threw it across the room, embracing her in a messy, cake-flavored kiss. Rose hoped that smile, his kiss, would always belong to her.


End file.
